Optical properties of passivated Si nanocrystals and SiOx nanostructures.
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Journal Article↗
Biomedical subjects
M Balooch
Publications and source records attributed to M Balooch.
Hardness and Young's modulus of human peritubular and intertubular dentine.
A specially modified atomic-force microscope was used to measure the hardness of fully hydrated peritubular and intertubular dentine at two locations within unerupted human third molars: within 1 mm of the dentine enamel junction and within 1 mm of the pulp. The hardness of fully hydrated peritubular dentine was independent of location, and ranged from 2.23 to 2.54 GPa. The hardness of fully hydrated intertubular dentine did depend upon location, and was significantly greater near the dentine enamel junction (values ranged from 0.49 to 0.52 GPa) than near the pulp (0.12-0.18 GPa). A Nanoindenter was used to estimate the Young's modulus of dehydrated peritubular and intertubular dentine from the unloading portion of the load displacement curve. The modulus values averaged 29.8 GPa for the peritubular dentine (considered to be a lower limit), and ranged from 17.7 to 21.1 GPa for the intertubular dentine, with the lower values obtained for dentine near the pulp.
Analysis of Variance↗
Atomic force microscope measurements of the hardness and elasticity of peritubular and intertubular human dentin.
An atomic force microscope was used to measure the hardness and elasticity of fully-hydrated peritubular and intertubular human dentin. The standard silicon nitride AFM tip and silicon cantilever assembly were replaced with a diamond tip and stainless steel cantilever having significantly higher stiffness. Hardness was measured as the ratio of the applied force to the projected indentation area for indentations with depths from 10-20 nm. The sample stiffness was measured by imaging specimens in a force-modulated mode. Hardness values of 2.3 +/- 0.3 GPa and 0.5 +/- 0.1 GPa were measured for the peritubular and intertubular dentin, respectively. Stiffness imaging revealed that the elastic modulus of the peritubular dentin was spatially homogeneous; whereas, there was considerable spatial variation in the elasticity of the intertubular dentin. The atomic force microscope can be used to measure the mechanical properties of fully hydrated calcified tissues at the submicron level of spatial resolution, thus augmenting more traditional depth sensing probes.
Dentin↗
The threshold effects of Nd and Ho: YAG laser-induced surface modification on demineralization of dentin surfaces.
Laser irradiation alters the structure of dentin and produces surface layers that give the appearance of being more enamel-like. The laser-modified surface may be more resistant to demineralization; hence, many investigators are proposing continued development of the laser as a possible preventive treatment for caries. The purpose of this study was to explore the morphological changes that occur in dentin when treated at threshold illuminance with two clinically interesting laser wavelengths, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the laser-treated surface at resisting demineralization in an acid-gel solution. The Nd: YAG laser (wavelength 1060 nm) produced significant recrystallization and grain growth of the apatite, without the formation of second phases such as beta-tricalcium phosphate. This recrystallized surface layer showed resistance to demineralization; however, the layer did not provide protection of the underlying dentin from demineralization because of cracks and macroscopic voids that allowed for penetration of the demineralizing gel. The Ho: YAG laser-treated surface (wavelength 2100 nm) did not show significant evidence of recrystallization and grain growth, and only a trace amount of an acid-resistant layer was observed with demineralization. It is speculated that the Ho:YAG laser is coupling with absorbed water, and that the heat transfer from the water to the mineral phase is inefficient. For the purposes of creating a demineralization-resistant layer, threshold illuminance with both Nd: YAG and Ho: YAG was ineffective.
Absorption↗
Atomic force microscopy of conditioning agents on dentin.
Dentin conditioners provide a microporous surface for penetration by bonding agents. This study used an atomic force microscope (AFM) to examine the initial steps in the conditioning process of dentin using three demineralizing agents, 0.5 M EDTA, and dilute solutions of phosphoric (3 mM, 6 mM) and citric (5 mM) acids, in order to establish the relationships between demineralization and changes in surface morphology. Polished dentin disks had a 10-nm-thick gold pattern applied which served as a height reference. Samples (n = 3/agent) were examined at baseline and at 2-s intervals for up to 120 s for each agent. EDTA (0.5 M) was used as received; other conditioners were diluted to slow the rats of demineralization for detailed study. The surfaces of the peritubular and intertubular regions were altered differently. Initially subsidence rates were equal and linear, but after a 100-nm depth change the intertubular rates decreased. For phosphoric acid and citric acid, the movement of the intertubular surface was uniform and the surfaces remained smooth. However, the intertubular surfaces were rough for the EDTA treatment. The surface subsidence reached a plateau after a depth change of about 0.5 microns, which resulted from a limit to the contraction of the demineralized and hydrated collagen scaffold.
Chelating Agents↗
Mineral distribution and dimensional changes in human dentin during demineralization.
Many bonding agents require the dentin surface to be acid-etched prior to being bonded. Understanding the stability and morphology of the etched dentin surface is important for improving bond strength and reliability in these systems. In this study, the atomic force microscope was used to quantify dimensional changes that occur to fully hydrated dentin during demineralization with a pH 4.0 lactic acid gel. A high-resolution microtomography instrument, the x-ray tomographic microscope, was also used to quantify the mineral density distribution in the dentin as a function of etching time. The intertubular dentin surface shrank by less than 0.5 microns during etching, while the peritubular dentin receded at an initially rapid linear rate. The dentin surface retained its initial morphology, although it was more porous with the removal of the peritubular dentin. Beneath the etched surface, there were three major zones characterized by mineral density differences. The first zone was a fully demineralized collagen layer, subjacent to which was a partially demineralized zone of roughly constant mineral density. Immediately following the partially mineralized layer was normal dentin. The presence of the partially mineralized layer could be explained in terms of different transport rates in the peritubular and intertubular dentin.
Acid Etching, Dental↗
Atomic force microscopy of mammalian sperm chromatin.
We have used the atomic force microscope (AFM) to image the surfaces of intact bull, mouse and rat sperm chromatin and partially decondensed mouse sperm chromatin attached to coverglass. High resolution AFM imaging was performed in air and saline using uncoated, unfixed and unstained chromatin. Images of the surfaces of intact chromatin from all three species and of an AFM-dissected bull sperm nucleus have revealed that the DNA is organized into large nodular subunits, which vary in diameter between 50 and 100 nm. Other images of partially decondensed mouse sperm chromatin show that the nodules are arranged along thick fibers that loop out away from the nucleus upon decondensation. These fibers appear to stretch or unravel, generating narrow smooth fibers with thicknesses equivalent to a single DNA-protamine complex. High resolution AFM images of the nodular subunits suggest that they are discrete, ellipsoid-shaped DNA packaging units possibly only one level of packaging above the protamine-DNA complex.
Animals↗
Atomic-force microscopic study of dimensional changes in human dentine during drying.
Six 1-mm thick sections of human dentine, three parallel to the occlusal surface and three perpendicular to the buccal surface, were prepared from non-carious third molars. The enamel was ground off, and the sections were polished with alumina powder to remove the smear layer. Each section was imaged by atomic-force microscopy with 20 nm horizontal and 0.1 nm vertical resolutions, initially while the samples were immersed in deionized water and then periodically during drying at room temperature. No dimensional changes over microscopic fields of view (scanned areas smaller than 50 x 50 microns) could be detected within the precision of the measurements (< 0.5%). Across the entire sample, however, vertical displacements of 10-20 microns were measured. Elasticity (Bernoulli beam) theory was used to calculate the engineering strain required to produce these displacements. The magnitude of the strain was 0.04% (SD = 0.01) in the buccal sections in the direction of the tubule axis and 0.09% (SD = 0.02) in the direction normal to the tubule axis. Also, the strain alternated between tension and compression across the samples. It was concluded that, as determined by using microscopic techniques, drying-induced strain is too small to require corrections for tubule size and tubule density.
Dental Stress Analysis↗
Atomic force microscopy of acid effects on dentin.
Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used in the examination of the early stages of acid treatment of dentin. Disks of highly polished dentin were initially examined under deionized water and following exposure to 0.025 M nitric acid for 20 s intervals from 0-100 s. Peritubular depth changes were linear (0.005 microns/s). The intertubular dentin surface initially moved at approximately 1/2 the peritubular rate and then reached a plateau as the demineralized collagen scaffold collapsed. There was no apparent difference in the tubule center-to-center distance during the treatment. Differences in the movement and morphology of the zones are of importance in dentin bonding applications relying on penetration of the demineralized dentin by adhesive monomers. The changes are probably related to the partial collapse of the collagen matrix. Alternatively, access to the apatite crystals and solubility may be higher in the peritubular zone. AFM appears to hold exceptional promise for the study of conditioning and priming agents for dentin bonding.
Acid Etching, Dental↗
Analysis of synthetic DNAs and DNA-protamine complexes with the scanning tunneling microscope.
Three duplex DNAs 22, 47, and 100 base-pairs in length have been imaged with the scanning tunneling microscope (STM) after deposition on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG). Images of the 47 base-pair (bp) molecules are resolved sufficiently to identify the two phosphodiester strands, the direction of helical coiling (this molecule contains three turns of left-handed helix), and single-stranded ends. Length measurements indicate that all three DNA sequences have adopted an "A-like" conformation. DNA-protamine complexes were also prepared and imaged under similar conditions. Length measurements of the complexes demonstrate that the binding of bull protamine 1 to the 47-mer stabilizes the DNA in a B conformation and prevents the B to A transition that has been shown to occur as the DNA molecules dehydrate on the surface. Measurements of the diameter of the complex (3 nm) were also obtained and were found to be only slightly larger than the DNA molecule. This observation is consistent with the binding of the protamine molecule inside one of the grooves.
Base Sequence↗
Tip-radius-induced artifacts in AFM images of protamine-complexed DNA fibers.
Isolated DNA fibers complexed with protamine (the chromosomal protein that packages DNA in mammalian sperm) have been produced by partially decondensing the highly compacted mouse sperm chromatin particle on a glass coverslip. These DNA fibers were then scanned with the atomic force microscope (AFM). While the smallest of the fibers appear in AFM images as ribbon-like structures 250-350 A wide and 10-25 A high, experiments indicate that these images are the result of a convolution of the imaging-tip's shape with the object's actual shape. In such convolutions the height of the object is affected only by the compressibility of the object, while the width is affected in addition by the sharpness of the tip. Images of polyamidoamine particles also appear to show this artifact. We have also deduced the tip's radius of curvature from images of sharp steps and attempt to demonstrate the artifacts associated with a relatively large imaging tip.
Animals↗
Scanning tunneling microscope images of adenine and thymine at atomic resolution.
The scanning tunneling microscope has been used to obtain images of DNA that reveal its major and minor grooves and the direction of helical coiling, but sufficient resolution has not yet been achieved to identify its bases. To determine if this technology is capable of identifying individual DNA bases, we have examined the molecular arrangements of adenine and thymine attached to the basal plane of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite. Both molecules form highly organized lattices following deposition on heated graphite. Lattice dimensions, structural periodicities, and the epitaxy of adenine and thymine molecules with respect to the basal plane of graphite have been determined. Images of these molecules at atomic resolution reveal that the aromatic regions are strongly detected in both molecules while the various side-groups are not well-resolved. These studies provide the first evidence that tunneling microscopy can be used to discriminate between purines and pyramidines.
Adenine↗